Top 10 vinous New Year’s resolutions

It’s the holiday season and “good cheer” is everywhere. The New Year is almost here. Many folks around the world make resolutions of sorts that they hope to keep come January 1.

Common ones include things like exercising more or eating better. Ever wonder what resolutions wine lovers make? Following are the top 10 vinous resolutions, in no particular order.

Many consumers say that in the New Year they vow to drink less and ultimately enjoy it more. That’s not to say that the folks who say this are heavy drinkers. The absence of regular wine consumption would make the heart – or rather palate – grow fonder, and wine more enjoyable as it would be a novelty and something to look forward to!

Many of these same consumers also swear that by drinking less, they would drink better. In other words, when they do drink, it would be wine of better quality and not just any old plonk.

Those who dine out often resolve to not order the “house wine” in restaurants any more. As a rule of thumb, the “house wine” in an eatery is usually very commercial or simple wine. It’s meant to go pretty much with everything on the menu and doesn’t work exceptionally well with any one item. It also gets the largest mark-up of any wine on a wine list. So by “drinking up,” as it were, you spend a few more dollars, but you get a much better quality of wine and generally the mark-up is lower.

Lots of people say that to enhance their experience, they will learn more about wine by taking classes at a school or community college. This way their knowledge and confidence level would be elevated as well as their enjoyment factor.

A lot of these same people say they would subscribe to a wine magazine or website to further their interest and aid in wine suggestions for purchasing.

Amongst these are folks who vow to join a wine club so they can attend frequent tastings, hobnob with other “wineknows,” and chat about their common love of vino.

A good number of consumers say that they would make it a point to travel and visit a wine region or two in the New Year. This way they can learn firsthand how their favourite imbibe was created and get to experience the culture that gave it life, thus enlightening the whole wine sipping trip.

To enhance sipping at home, many consumers vow to take a cooking course so they can create culinary masterpieces in-house to match to wine. Since wine and food are a marriage made in heaven, this is a fabulous idea.

Also on the home front, the purchase of decent wine glasses is high on many lists. A poor wine glass can detract from even a great wine, so good glasses that are created for certain styles and varietals are a must.

Finally, many wine enthusiasts decide to start a wine collection at home. Either renovating a space in the basement or designing and building a proper wine cellar could be on the to-do list for the New Year. Those with little space or who live in an apartment could invest in a “vintage keeper,” the refrigerator-type units that simulate ideal cellar conditions.

There you have it … the top 10 vinous New Years Resolutions for 2016. Perhaps some of these are yours. Happy holidays and responsible sipping!

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